Mughlai chicken is the perfect creamy curry recipe. Made with almonds, spices and aromatics, this curry is a guaranteed crowd favorite. If you love korma, you’re going to LOVE this version.
How to make Mughlai Chicken
- Marinate the chicken: Mix together plain yogurt (I like using Greek yogurt), ground cumin, coriander, cardamom, turmeric and cinnamon. Add crushed garlic and ginger and season with salt and pepper. Slice boneless chicken thighs or chicken breasts into bite size chunks and place in the marinade. Mix well then cover and place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes but up to 24 hours. The longer you allow the chicken to marinade the more tender and flavored the chicken will be.
- Make the creamy Mughlai sauce: Soak a cup of blanched almonds in boiling water for 10 minutes. Tip the almonds with the water into a blender and blend until smooth. You might need more water to get the almond paste really smooth. Alternatively, you can use ground almonds instead. In a large pot, cook onion, ginger and garlic in ghee or butter until fragrant. Add spices and sugar and cook for another minute. Add the marinated chicken and cook until the spices start to stick to the bottom of the pot. Pour in the chicken stock, cream and almond paste, scraping the bottom of the pot to release any spices. Reduce the heat and partially cover with a lid before allowing the sauce to simmer gently for 20-30 minute until thickened and the chicken is completely cooked. Do a final tasting and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Serve: Scatter over toasted sliced almonds and serve the Mughlai chicken with Basmati rice, Naan bread and poppadoms.
Freezing and reheating instructions
- Freezing: Creamy sauces tend to split once thawed but the taste will still be delicious. Allow the cooked curry to cool completely then transfer to freezer safe containers. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Thaw completely then transfer to a saucepan. Add half a cup of chicken stock and bring to a gently simmer. Allow to simmer until heated throughout. This curry will last for up to 3 days if kept in a sealed container in the fridge.
What to serve with Mughlai chicken
Chicken curry recipes
Mughlai chicken
Mughlai chicken is the perfect creamy curry recipe. Made with almonds, spices and aromatics, this curry is a guaranteed crowd favorite.
Print
Pin
Rate
Add to Shopping List
Servings: 6
Calories: 460kcal
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 kg (2lbs) boneless chicken cubed
For the curry
- 1 cup almonds
- 1-2 cups boiling water
- 1 tbsp butter / ghee
- 2 onions finely diced
- 4 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 tsp ginger crushed
- 2 tsp Garam Masala
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 cup heavy / whipping cream
- 1 cup chicken stock
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients for the marinade together then add the chicken. Mix well then cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes but up to 24 hours.
- To make the sauce, soak the almonds in the boiling water for 10 minutes. Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth, adding more water if necessary.
- Melt the butter in a large pot set over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant.
- Add the spices and sugar and cook for another minute.
- Add the marinated chicken and cook until the chicken is starting to brown and the bottom of the pot becomes sticky. Pour in the chicken stock, cream and almond paste.
- Reduce the heat, partially cover with a lid and allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is cooked through.
- Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Serve with your choice of side dishes.
Nutrition
Calories: 460kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 46g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 136mg | Sodium: 635mg | Potassium: 969mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 336IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 144mg | Iron: 2mg
Can you use lamb with this instead of chicken? Does anything need to change?
You can, it will just need longer cooking time and perhaps some more liquid.
how much ground almond should be used, please
1 cup almonds.
Can you use cashews instead of almonds?
Absolutely, that would make this similar to a chicken korma curry and it is DELICIOUS!
If you use ground almonds do you soak them or mix them with something and how much do you use? Love your recipes.
No, no need to soak before using. Just add to the sauce and simmer with the rest of the ingredients. 🙂
Worked great for me, very tasty. Toasted almonds are a nice textural addition.
So glad you liked it Daniel!
So glad you liked it Lou!
Hi,
I had planned on making another dinner when the weather changed and went all cold and I thought noodles and chicken just won’t do and then I remembered your post and gave it a try. Well it was a perfect match and tasted delicious. I liked the way it was rich tasting without leaving you feeling like you’ve over indulged.
And, to all the people that comment I want to say “thanks” it helps to read before attempting something to know what you guys thought and how it came out for you …
When I seem to make this it doesn’t go that fabulous orange colour mine goes a kind of grey yellow.. it’s still pretty darn tasty though!
The recipe looks wonderful. I have a question – do you think I can use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs?
Jay, of course! I just prefer to use chicken thighs as I find they have more flavour and don’t become stringy when cooked, like some chicken breasts tend to do. Let me know what you think once you’ve tried it!
Thank you for the reply! I will definitely be giving this recipe a try.
I made this dish on Monday and it was so flavorful and delicious!! I didn’t use a food processor to create the curry paste because I was feeling lazy and also added in some carrots and green peppers because I had them in my fridge and always try to sneak in veggies. I absolutely LOVED the almond texture on top. I also found that 250ml chicken broth made my curry too watery, so I will use less next time and hopefully it will turn out as beautiful and thick as yours!
I am definitely trying this delicious dish this week! will report back 🙂
I buy boneless chicken thighs at PnP
Love love LOVE an excellent curry! Many thanks for the recipe!!
I tried this and it was fantastic! The blend of spices are just right. My 2,5 year old little girl loved it as well and she is a real fussy eater. Thanks for this recipe, it is going in my “classics file”!
This is great and all these spices in the recipe will make it yummy for sure.
Thanks for this, i ll be trying the recipe.
That curry looks gorgeous! I haven’t had some good Indian food in quite a while now and this has totally got me wanting some. Your photos are so beautiful!
I can’t wait to try this! Where can one buy boneless chicken thighs in pta/centurion or do I have to debone it myself? It sounds like a terrible mission to do it yourself, could one just leave the bone in as well?
You can buy boneless chicken thighs from Woolies. 🙂
Looks awesome. I haven’t made curry in ages.